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Ruby's Song #2
The Diamond Deep (Ruby's Song) Paperback October 8, 2013
What if a woman as strong and as complex as Eva Perón began her life as a robot repair assistant threatened by a powerful peacekeeping force that wants to take all she has from her? The discovery ship, Creative Fire, is on its way home from a multi-generational journey. But home is nothing like the crew expected. They have been gone for generations, and the system they return to is home to technologies and riches beyond their wildest dreams. But they are immediately oppressed and relegated to the lowest status imaginable, barely able to interact with the technologies and people of the star station where they dock, the Diamond Deep. Ruby Martin and her partner, Joel North, must find a way to learn what they need to know and to become more than they have ever been if they are to find a way to save their people. From the Trade Paperback edition.
Unknown Binding
First published January 1, 2013
5 people are currently reading
426 people want to read
About the author
Brenda Cooper
121 books145 followersBrenda Cooper writes science fiction,fantasy, and poetry.
Brenda's most recent novels are EDGE of DARK and SPEAR OF LIGHT from Pyr and POST from ESpec Books. Edge of Dark won the 2016 Endeavour Award for a notable science fiction or fantasy novel by a Northwest author.
Other recent novels include the duology THE CREATIVE FIRE and THE DIAMOND DEEP, also from Pyr.
Brenda released two collections in 2015. Her all science fiction CRACKING THE SKY came out from Fairwood Press and her all-fantasy ebook collection BEYOND THE WATERFALL DOOR was created through a six-author Kickstarter project.
Brenda is the author of the Endeavor award winner for 2008: THE SILVER SHIP AND THE SEA, and of two sequels, READING THE WIND and WINGS OF CREATION. She has written a novel with Larry Niven, called BUILDING HARLEQUIN's MOON, and a solo stand-alone novel, MAYAN DECEMBER. She has numerous stories that have published in a variety of magazines, from Nature to Asimov's. Many of her stories have been selected for Year's Best anthologies.
By day, Brenda is the City of Kirkland’s CIO, and at night and in early morning hours, she’s a futurist and writer. She lives in the pacific northwest o the United States of America.
Brenda's most recent novels are EDGE of DARK and SPEAR OF LIGHT from Pyr and POST from ESpec Books. Edge of Dark won the 2016 Endeavour Award for a notable science fiction or fantasy novel by a Northwest author.
Other recent novels include the duology THE CREATIVE FIRE and THE DIAMOND DEEP, also from Pyr.
Brenda released two collections in 2015. Her all science fiction CRACKING THE SKY came out from Fairwood Press and her all-fantasy ebook collection BEYOND THE WATERFALL DOOR was created through a six-author Kickstarter project.
Brenda is the author of the Endeavor award winner for 2008: THE SILVER SHIP AND THE SEA, and of two sequels, READING THE WIND and WINGS OF CREATION. She has written a novel with Larry Niven, called BUILDING HARLEQUIN's MOON, and a solo stand-alone novel, MAYAN DECEMBER. She has numerous stories that have published in a variety of magazines, from Nature to Asimov's. Many of her stories have been selected for Year's Best anthologies.
By day, Brenda is the City of Kirkland’s CIO, and at night and in early morning hours, she’s a futurist and writer. She lives in the pacific northwest o the United States of America.
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Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews
December 14, 2015
10/12 - Intending to skim-read this because, while I thought The Creative Fire was a disappointment I need to see how the duology ends. Will try to limit posts regarding grammar or editing issues. I'm expecting them to be there, just like they were in the first book, but will try my best to ignore them in order to get through the book faster and make the review easier to write. To be continued...
13/12 - Well, I'm surprised! I actually liked this nearly as much as Edge of Dark, probably a 3.5 to its 4. The first 100 pages were pretty similar to The Creative Fire, but then when they arrived at The Diamond Deep my interest picked up and things became more exciting. The quality of editing was still the same - low for a published book - missing words (the, at, etc.), the wrong words (on instead of in, etc.), one character's name exchanged for another's, but like I said on Friday it's nothing I wasn't expecting. What I wasn't expecting was to find this easy to spend a whole day reading, I was expecting to struggle through it and skip bits here and there when I got bored. Ruby was much less irritating than she was in The Creative Fire and I was surprised by the way she died. It's actually revived my interest in the series and I'm thinking of reading Edge of Dark again so that the common characters, or their descendants, are still fresh in my mind and I can see the connections from this series to the next.
13/12 - Well, I'm surprised! I actually liked this nearly as much as Edge of Dark, probably a 3.5 to its 4. The first 100 pages were pretty similar to The Creative Fire, but then when they arrived at The Diamond Deep my interest picked up and things became more exciting. The quality of editing was still the same - low for a published book - missing words (the, at, etc.), the wrong words (on instead of in, etc.), one character's name exchanged for another's, but like I said on Friday it's nothing I wasn't expecting. What I wasn't expecting was to find this easy to spend a whole day reading, I was expecting to struggle through it and skip bits here and there when I got bored. Ruby was much less irritating than she was in The Creative Fire and I was surprised by the way she died. It's actually revived my interest in the series and I'm thinking of reading Edge of Dark again so that the common characters, or their descendants, are still fresh in my mind and I can see the connections from this series to the next.
October 8, 2013
4 of 5 stars at The BiblioSanctum http://bibliosanctum.blogspot.com/201...
The Diamond Deep was a very pleasant surprise, one of those books that I have a feeling should deserve a lot more attention than it gets. Nevertheless, I'll admit I knew very little about the book when it first came into my possession, and for that reason, I almost relegated it to the "save-for-later" pile. Boy, am I so very glad I didn't.
It was reading the first page containing the Author's Note that first transformed my mild curiosity into awed interest. There, Brenda Cooper writes that Evita, the musical about Eva Perón, was the main inspiration for the book's story. Something about this struck me, made me want to know more and read the book right away. Cooper further writes, though, that The Diamond Deep is simply the story Evita's legend teased out of her. And knowing what I do about Eva Perón, I could definitely see how her life and legacy inspired this novel, but the story is also a very fascinating piece of social-science-fiction, a class-oriented space opera with elements of action and suspense.
The book's main protagonist, Ruby Martin, is a very strong and complex character, much like the historical figure she was based on. She and the inhabitants of their discovery ship are heading home from a multi-generational journey, and from the sound of it, things haven't been easy. I have not read the first book of the Ruby's Song series, The Creative Fire, but it is clear that there'd been a rigidly divided social structure on the ship, before a movement spearheaded by Ruby and others brought a change.
Just as Evita had been an actress before becoming First Lady of Argentina and a political leader in her own right, Ruby started off as a robot repair assistant and a singer before becoming partners with the ship's leader Joel North. And just like Evita during her short life, Ruby's character is controversial, as adored as she is hated by her crew. When they finally reach their destination, her leadership is further tested when it turns out their new home is nothing like any of them expected.
After being away for so long, they are immediately dismissed as primitive and naive, given no status, voice or power. Having just rid their own society of inequality, they arrive at The Diamond Deep space station only to be treated like beggars and slaves, the lowest of the low. They are used and manipulated by parties who deliberately and shamelessly keep them in the dark, knowing that there's nothing they can do about it. As with most fiction concerning sociological speculation, this book is a reflection of some of the current issues in our own contemporary societies, and it can be quite upsetting and infuriating to read about Ruby and her crew's situation.
Ruby herself is an interesting protagonist. She has a very dominant and energetic personality, but her love for her people is boundless. She can also be a tad vain and wrapped up in her own self-importance, but perhaps that's the point the author is trying to make about Ruby and her leadership -- that even strong characters are flawed and fallible, and that they can make mistakes and cause pain unwittingly even when they have good intentions or think they are doing the best for others. Ruby cares too much, perhaps, unwilling to accept that she can't be everywhere at once and do everything for everyone at the same time.
I think my appreciation for her character also increased after I finished this book and began researching more into the life of Eva Perón, which opened my eyes to more parallels made by the author. Moreover, though, I liked this book for its themes, which explore matters such as power, poverty, and the responsibilities of a society to its members. It is a very compelling story of revolution, and one woman's journey to fight for her people's voices to be heard.
A review copy of this book was provided to me by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
The Diamond Deep was a very pleasant surprise, one of those books that I have a feeling should deserve a lot more attention than it gets. Nevertheless, I'll admit I knew very little about the book when it first came into my possession, and for that reason, I almost relegated it to the "save-for-later" pile. Boy, am I so very glad I didn't.
It was reading the first page containing the Author's Note that first transformed my mild curiosity into awed interest. There, Brenda Cooper writes that Evita, the musical about Eva Perón, was the main inspiration for the book's story. Something about this struck me, made me want to know more and read the book right away. Cooper further writes, though, that The Diamond Deep is simply the story Evita's legend teased out of her. And knowing what I do about Eva Perón, I could definitely see how her life and legacy inspired this novel, but the story is also a very fascinating piece of social-science-fiction, a class-oriented space opera with elements of action and suspense.
The book's main protagonist, Ruby Martin, is a very strong and complex character, much like the historical figure she was based on. She and the inhabitants of their discovery ship are heading home from a multi-generational journey, and from the sound of it, things haven't been easy. I have not read the first book of the Ruby's Song series, The Creative Fire, but it is clear that there'd been a rigidly divided social structure on the ship, before a movement spearheaded by Ruby and others brought a change.
Just as Evita had been an actress before becoming First Lady of Argentina and a political leader in her own right, Ruby started off as a robot repair assistant and a singer before becoming partners with the ship's leader Joel North. And just like Evita during her short life, Ruby's character is controversial, as adored as she is hated by her crew. When they finally reach their destination, her leadership is further tested when it turns out their new home is nothing like any of them expected.
After being away for so long, they are immediately dismissed as primitive and naive, given no status, voice or power. Having just rid their own society of inequality, they arrive at The Diamond Deep space station only to be treated like beggars and slaves, the lowest of the low. They are used and manipulated by parties who deliberately and shamelessly keep them in the dark, knowing that there's nothing they can do about it. As with most fiction concerning sociological speculation, this book is a reflection of some of the current issues in our own contemporary societies, and it can be quite upsetting and infuriating to read about Ruby and her crew's situation.
Ruby herself is an interesting protagonist. She has a very dominant and energetic personality, but her love for her people is boundless. She can also be a tad vain and wrapped up in her own self-importance, but perhaps that's the point the author is trying to make about Ruby and her leadership -- that even strong characters are flawed and fallible, and that they can make mistakes and cause pain unwittingly even when they have good intentions or think they are doing the best for others. Ruby cares too much, perhaps, unwilling to accept that she can't be everywhere at once and do everything for everyone at the same time.
I think my appreciation for her character also increased after I finished this book and began researching more into the life of Eva Perón, which opened my eyes to more parallels made by the author. Moreover, though, I liked this book for its themes, which explore matters such as power, poverty, and the responsibilities of a society to its members. It is a very compelling story of revolution, and one woman's journey to fight for her people's voices to be heard.
A review copy of this book was provided to me by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
January 21, 2016
I accidentally read this second book in the series first! So it explains why I was a little confused about what was going on at first, but I figured you were just being thrown into the environment. It's actually impressive that I was able to follow the story without reading the first book. And I loved it! As soon as I finished, I looked up the author to see what else she's written. That's when I discovered the first book! So I immediately devoured that book and now I'm reading this one again. It's interesting to read it again, now knowing the history! They are great books. The story is interesting and the characters are well-developed.
October 13, 2016
not a bad Ya book
April 22, 2016
As with the previous book in this series, my disclaimer - I know the author personally and in fact do some research and assistant work for her. I happened to win these books in a raffle before starting work with her, and all opinions written here are my own. :)
This novel opens up soon after the first book left off, as the Creative Fire starts to approach the star system of its genesis, where the generational ship will finally return home. Ruby and her partner Joel must manage the crew of the Fire as they approach, making decisions that will impact all of them, and doing the best they can with the limited information they have available. They decide to dock the Fire at the largest space station, the Diamond Deep, and the rest of the story unfolds as they join the station and start to learn about their new home.
There will be spoilers here, as I'm not sure how to talk about what's going on without them.
The writing was solid and the dialogue was good, and the descriptions and flow of movement and action across the station were wonderful. I particularly liked the interactions and characterizations of the different people in power, although I come at this having already read both books that form a sequel set about 60 years in the future, so I've "seen" some of them before in their own future. I would have liked to have seen more at the end of the book, although I realize why it was stopped where it was, but perhaps that would be somewhere for a few short stories to fill in the changes between this book and Edge of Dark.
Solid 3.5 stars, rounding up to 4 because of the excellent detail and characterizations, especially those of Aleesi and Ix, the two non-human characters. I enjoyed the book and found it a good read.
This novel opens up soon after the first book left off, as the Creative Fire starts to approach the star system of its genesis, where the generational ship will finally return home. Ruby and her partner Joel must manage the crew of the Fire as they approach, making decisions that will impact all of them, and doing the best they can with the limited information they have available. They decide to dock the Fire at the largest space station, the Diamond Deep, and the rest of the story unfolds as they join the station and start to learn about their new home.
There will be spoilers here, as I'm not sure how to talk about what's going on without them.
The writing was solid and the dialogue was good, and the descriptions and flow of movement and action across the station were wonderful. I particularly liked the interactions and characterizations of the different people in power, although I come at this having already read both books that form a sequel set about 60 years in the future, so I've "seen" some of them before in their own future. I would have liked to have seen more at the end of the book, although I realize why it was stopped where it was, but perhaps that would be somewhere for a few short stories to fill in the changes between this book and Edge of Dark.
Solid 3.5 stars, rounding up to 4 because of the excellent detail and characterizations, especially those of Aleesi and Ix, the two non-human characters. I enjoyed the book and found it a good read.
January 13, 2014
This and more reviews, interviews etc on Dark Matter Zine, an online magazine. http://www.darkmatterzine.com. This review was written by Rebecca Muir for Dark Matter Zine.
The Diamond Deep is the finale to the two part story begun in The Creative Fire. The old and failing spaceship, Creative Fire, arrives back in its home system and docks at the space station Diamond Deep.
Ruby Martin and Joel North had fought for a united crew to arrive back home, one where every member is recognised. However, life back home is very different to what they expected.
Ruby and Joel must find a way to make sure their crew survive and adapt to their new situation. They need to make allies fast as it appears they already have enemies. Once again, Ruby must fight for those she loves. She quickly finds new battles to fight as well, as her outsider’s eyes allow her to see the injustices of the society she has come to. Her talent as a singer and songwriter, coupled with her passion and courage, thrust her into the arena once again.
In some regards, this book felt like more of the same. As in The Creative Fire, the story is about Ruby singing her way to revolution. The story is bigger than that, though – the challenges of leadership and providing for her people and the portrayal of the world of the space station are part of the bigger scope of this book. If you look at it as the second part of the same story, the repetition in the story is understandable.
The book has a lot of tension and drama which kept me reading. The chapters are quite short and jumped between characters a lot; I found myself wanting to squeeze in just one more section to find out what happened next to a particular character. The drama built up towards the end then finished on a bittersweet note which I couldn’t decide if I liked or not. I don’t think I would say I disliked it.
I think the most important aspect of this book was the exploration of the responsibility a society has to its poor. Ruby is convinced that everyone in an affluent society has the right to the basics of life. She cannot conceive of a reason to deny those basics to those who, for whatever reason, are unable to provide them for themselves. She is troubled by the extremes of wealth and poverty she finds on the space station. Reflecting on this, I think the book has a lot to say to Western countries where there are similar extremes to be found. I couldn’t help wondering what Ruby would find to sing about in our culture.
On the negative side, I did not think the characters were explored very well in this book. For the most part, Brenda Cooper seems to have relied on the work she did in The Creative Fire. The new characters from the space station just didn’t feel as well-drawn to me. They were rushed into and through the story and were never really developed very well. There are some notable exceptions, however, such as the young man Haric and the human/machine hybrid Aleesi.
You should read The Creative Fire before you read The Diamond Deep. If you enjoyed The Creative Fire, you will probably enjoy this book too. It is worth a read, but I thought The Creative Fire was better.
The Diamond Deep is the finale to the two part story begun in The Creative Fire. The old and failing spaceship, Creative Fire, arrives back in its home system and docks at the space station Diamond Deep.
Ruby Martin and Joel North had fought for a united crew to arrive back home, one where every member is recognised. However, life back home is very different to what they expected.
Ruby and Joel must find a way to make sure their crew survive and adapt to their new situation. They need to make allies fast as it appears they already have enemies. Once again, Ruby must fight for those she loves. She quickly finds new battles to fight as well, as her outsider’s eyes allow her to see the injustices of the society she has come to. Her talent as a singer and songwriter, coupled with her passion and courage, thrust her into the arena once again.
In some regards, this book felt like more of the same. As in The Creative Fire, the story is about Ruby singing her way to revolution. The story is bigger than that, though – the challenges of leadership and providing for her people and the portrayal of the world of the space station are part of the bigger scope of this book. If you look at it as the second part of the same story, the repetition in the story is understandable.
The book has a lot of tension and drama which kept me reading. The chapters are quite short and jumped between characters a lot; I found myself wanting to squeeze in just one more section to find out what happened next to a particular character. The drama built up towards the end then finished on a bittersweet note which I couldn’t decide if I liked or not. I don’t think I would say I disliked it.
I think the most important aspect of this book was the exploration of the responsibility a society has to its poor. Ruby is convinced that everyone in an affluent society has the right to the basics of life. She cannot conceive of a reason to deny those basics to those who, for whatever reason, are unable to provide them for themselves. She is troubled by the extremes of wealth and poverty she finds on the space station. Reflecting on this, I think the book has a lot to say to Western countries where there are similar extremes to be found. I couldn’t help wondering what Ruby would find to sing about in our culture.
On the negative side, I did not think the characters were explored very well in this book. For the most part, Brenda Cooper seems to have relied on the work she did in The Creative Fire. The new characters from the space station just didn’t feel as well-drawn to me. They were rushed into and through the story and were never really developed very well. There are some notable exceptions, however, such as the young man Haric and the human/machine hybrid Aleesi.
You should read The Creative Fire before you read The Diamond Deep. If you enjoyed The Creative Fire, you will probably enjoy this book too. It is worth a read, but I thought The Creative Fire was better.
December 14, 2013
Brenda Cooper, borrowing a smidgen from Evita Peron’s life continues the tale of Ruby’s Song. The Creative Fire (paper) was a generation ship that explored several stars and now is going home. Ruby led a revolution that destroyed the caste system. Now they enter their very changed home system, survive an attack by pirates and dock at the largest station orbiting the mostly abandoned home planet. The Diamond Deep (trade from Pyr) operates under harsh libertarian rules that offer a short life to those who won’t compete for credits. This is extremely difficult for the several thousand crew who don’t know the rules and only have enough credits to support them for six months. But Ruby, just as she was on their ship, is charasmic singer, quickly moving to top billing on a station starved for novelty. But her songs and the actions of her crewmates trying to survive, upset the leadership leading to a dangerous trial. This is a sad tale, impossible-to-put-down with a bitter-sweet ending. I dare you not to cry.
Review printed in the Philadelphia Weekly Press
Review printed in the Philadelphia Weekly Press
October 25, 2015
Multi-generation ship finally comes back to the place it started, its mission mostly forgotten, its destination greatly changed. I'm not sure I've ever read anything with quite this conceit. And inspired by the life of Eva Peron and the musical Evita - which kind of means you read the whole book expecting a particular ending for the lead character Ruby.
Definitely not a YA, unlike the first book. This one goes into the nature of what one instance of life with an untrustable and unfair government looks like. It shows a system based on credit from the perspective for which it is is alien.
Ruby is not believable but much of the rest of the book truly is and raised interesting questions.
Definitely not a YA, unlike the first book. This one goes into the nature of what one instance of life with an untrustable and unfair government looks like. It shows a system based on credit from the perspective for which it is is alien.
Ruby is not believable but much of the rest of the book truly is and raised interesting questions.
September 3, 2014
compared to the last book this didn't pack the same emotional punch for me. The treatment of a ultra capitalist society felt a bit too on the nose for me. however I did very much enjoy the book and I liked the addicts dealing with the complexity of navigating a society that you do not fully understand
November 13, 2013
An unoriginal and superficial plot is almost saved by an emotional heart. It's a real shame that the potential for an interesting sociopolitical novel should be thrown away with such poor world-buulding.
http://opionator.wordpress.com/2013/1...
http://opionator.wordpress.com/2013/1...
January 9, 2014
Pretty good, but not great story of a generation shop returning home after many generations and trying to adjust to a new life.
The sorry wasn't particularly believable, but the insights into human nature were good. 3.5 stars.
The sorry wasn't particularly believable, but the insights into human nature were good. 3.5 stars.
October 11, 2015
My review of book one says can't wait for book two, yet in the two year wait I forgot book one. Bits and pieces came back from reading reviews and a few more from hints in this story. Try not to read between the lines looking for politics or irony enjoy the story a SINGER for CHANGE.
May 10, 2016
She is a wonderful writer, she keeps your interest and your anticipation going all the time
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews